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I see the catalogs are rolling in from the Hatcherys. Good sign, winter is going to end shortly. Not sure about where I'm at because It's still pretty cold.
I always figure 2lbs or a little more of feed per 1 lb of chicken weight.(so a 5 lb chicken probably ate about 10+ lbs of food)
I'm sure they'd lay eggs,but not very well and to be honest never kept them long enough to find out.They won't give you back the same chicken hatched.(buy your chicks from a hatchery, breeders spent $$$$ to get the results. It would be hard to copy it in your backyard) They were developed to produce meat fast then to be processsed. Another reason why I love them. You may like to take your family on vacation,you won't spend all summer raising these. I know some people think it's cruel raising an animal that should be processed before reaching sexual maturity but to me that's one of the biggest reasons to choose them. Why would a chicken developed to be raised in a short time need to have a long life span.(no different than veal,beef cattle or pigs) They really are perfect for the person who is really raising chicken for eating. We like our chicken on the rotisserie,so we like them bigger than most. Some will argue that keeping a meatie longer than 8 weeks your wasteing feed. Maybe if you are selling for profit where every penny counts. But the way I see it, if feed costs $.16 per pound whats a few more lbs. of feed compared to a lb. of chicken. To save any more than that and you'd be eating the chicken feed instead.
Some will argue why would you need 8-10 lb birds? Well for us if we didn't we have to cook 3 @ 2-3lbs to get our dinner and our rotisserie won't hold three. I'd rather raise 25-30 meaties for 8 -10 weeks than 100 dual purpose which would take our summer away.
Your best bet is to try many and see what works for you the best. No two people are the same as far as taste and being practical. You can't compare chocolate and strawberry icecream and say which one is better flavor. It's no different with chicken. I will say they will taste different and have different texture(any older bird with be tougher,stringier and have different flavor) but figuring out which one you like can only be done by you. People can tell you what works for them,but can't tell you what works for you.
Hope you enjoy looking through the hatchery books as much as I do. let us know what you decide. Will
Will,
Ive decided to let you raise me some and process then give me a hollar and Ill pay you for my lack of headaches of trying this because Im so scared! LOL..teasing. Ill have to see whats out there I guess..I certainly dont want to get in over my head but I wanted to try 5-10 of these types of birds and see how they grow and eat and such...I have a hard enough time feeding my family the birds we raise-it freaks them out but I think If I can manage to raise our own and they taste wonderful I can change their minds! What type do you get? where do you process them? I have processed many chickens but only roos I dont needs and I only keep breasts and legs-for now
I see the catalogs are rolling in from the Hatcherys. Good sign, winter is going to end shortly. Not sure about where I'm at because It's still pretty cold.
I always figure 2lbs or a little more of feed per 1 lb of chicken weight.(so a 5 lb chicken probably ate about 10+ lbs of food)
I'm sure they'd lay eggs,but not very well and to be honest never kept them long enough to find out.They won't give you back the same chicken hatched.(buy your chicks from a hatchery, breeders spent $$$$ to get the results. It would be hard to copy it in your backyard) They were developed to produce meat fast then to be processsed. Another reason why I love them. You may like to take your family on vacation,you won't spend all summer raising these. I know some people think it's cruel raising an animal that should be processed before reaching sexual maturity but to me that's one of the biggest reasons to choose them. Why would a chicken developed to be raised in a short time need to have a long life span.(no different than veal,beef cattle or pigs) They really are perfect for the person who is really raising chicken for eating. We like our chicken on the rotisserie,so we like them bigger than most. Some will argue that keeping a meatie longer than 8 weeks your wasteing feed. Maybe if you are selling for profit where every penny counts. But the way I see it, if feed costs $.16 per pound whats a few more lbs. of feed compared to a lb. of chicken. To save any more than that and you'd be eating the chicken feed instead.
Some will argue why would you need 8-10 lb birds? Well for us if we didn't we have to cook 3 @ 2-3lbs to get our dinner and our rotisserie won't hold three. I'd rather raise 25-30 meaties for 8 -10 weeks than 100 dual purpose which would take our summer away.
Your best bet is to try many and see what works for you the best. No two people are the same as far as taste and being practical. You can't compare chocolate and strawberry icecream and say which one is better flavor. It's no different with chicken. I will say they will taste different and have different texture(any older bird with be tougher,stringier and have different flavor) but figuring out which one you like can only be done by you. People can tell you what works for them,but can't tell you what works for you.
Hope you enjoy looking through the hatchery books as much as I do. let us know what you decide. Will
Will,
Ive decided to let you raise me some and process then give me a hollar and Ill pay you for my lack of headaches of trying this because Im so scared! LOL..teasing. Ill have to see whats out there I guess..I certainly dont want to get in over my head but I wanted to try 5-10 of these types of birds and see how they grow and eat and such...I have a hard enough time feeding my family the birds we raise-it freaks them out but I think If I can manage to raise our own and they taste wonderful I can change their minds! What type do you get? where do you process them? I have processed many chickens but only roos I dont needs and I only keep breasts and legs-for now